Naruto RPR Akaya's viewpoint
by Hot Mess 12
Summary: A contribute to Naruto RPG, one of the best role-playing sites I've ever been a part of. This version is told in Akaya's viewpoint, a young shinobi trying to make sense of her life. Please review, I'm dying to know people's opinions on it. :
1. In the Moonlight

Akaya awoke to the beaming light of the moon shining through her window. How long had it been? Even to her that was a stupid question because she knew the answer. Today, one year ago, she heard the news. The news that even she couldn't have imagined. She knew she should have known; death was just a cycle in the life of a shinobi. But still, it was Tajek.

She had been walking casually headed towards his house that morning with her freshly baked muffins. To this day, it surprised her that she made them. She spent all morning making them. Some flour was still in her hair, but in an instant, how she looked wouldn't matter.

She had overheard the villagers talking, and two words she wished would never be put into the same sentence were in the same sentence: "dead" and "Tajek". Well really, she just heard Hokage's son, but those muffins fell from her arms in milliseconds as she had raced to the scene. She remembered hearing the thud of the muffins as they hit the ground. All her hard work went to waste. What a waste.

She looked up at the ceiling. It was flat and white, like it was any other day or night. It couldn't distract her from the horrifying memories rushing back to her.

As she shifted in and out of the crowd around his house, she finally pushed herself to the front. She saw the stack of bodies. All were in disarray, and his body was supposed to be in that stack, but it was never identified. The tears immediately welled up in her eyes as his headband laid on the dirt. She stood like a statue while she was being pushed around in the crowd. Every emotion she had was gone...apathy was all that remained. Until she looked up in a tree.

As she turned onto her side, she vividly remembered Sesoni's face when she arrived: calm and collected but angry. It made her restrain herself from crying in public and in some weird way, he gave her hope. He knew more than he was going to tell. He always did.

She finally looked at the clock. It read 11:11. That was ironic to her. Her only wish in life had been snatched away from her in one day, in one event, in one moment.

Tajek was gone but not dead. Sesoni had later told her that. As always, Sesoni was there to explain what she needed to know. He was a friend she was glad to have. It helped to know he was alive but it stung her all the same. She contemplated a million times if he still loved her like she loved him. If he was safe like she was now. If he thought about her when she thought about him constantly.

She rolled onto her back and sat up in bed, pulling her knees up to her chest. It hurt every day, but it got worse as time went on. It never once became tolerable. And she knew everyone could tell. The stares she got in the village drove her insane. Everyone know of them...how couldn't they know of the Hokage's son girlfriend? They pitied her as she slowly made her way through each day and each assignment. She was successful in everything she did, just like before but that was simply because she trained instead of drowning herself in thoughts.

However, tonight was the night she felt like letting everything she was holding in out. The isolation in the cold black room with the only light coming from the moon outside gave Akaya a chance to cry without ridicule or shame. No emotional training would have helped her through this. How did Sesoni do it?

She buried her face in her thighs and continued to cry until nothing was left to cry. To the point where her eyes were bloodshot and puffy. To the point that she knew. She knew he was the one. That she loved him and only him.

She had grabbed his headband, and rushed home that day. As she sprinted, it had started raining, which was most appropriate for the occasion. He wasn't the only one who died; she did as well. She went to her training ground and just hit the trees until her knuckles were covered in the blood and bark had left scratches on her skin. She eventually collapsed as the rain pounded against her back. That was the moment she figured something out. Tajek wasn't dead. He was with her somehow. Because the rain let up as soon as she had collapsed. It was almost a sign to say stay strong.

Akaya slid out from underneath the covers and placed her feet on the cold wood floors. It sent goose bumps up her arms. But that was a sensation she was used to by now and it did not phase her at all. She opened her door to see nothing but darkness. She reached around the wall to find the switch. After finding it she pressed her finger against it before allowing the lights to flicker on. She found a weird comfort in this new found light. She slowly trailed into her kitchen and to the refrigerator. She leaned up against it, leaning her head forward to finally tap it against the fridge.

The tears came back. Why did this have to be so damn difficult! She angrily opened the fridge once her vision had been blurred by the salty water. She knew where Himeka Hiromi kept the vodka. Well, technically, where she had. It was hidden behind a slate of wood she put up in the back to "keep it from leaking". Or keep her secret drinking problem from leaking.

It was completely clear. If she hadn't known better, it would have been water in a fancy glass container. But she knew better.

She reached for the orange juice and set both the vodka and orange juice on the counter. Akaya grabbed a glass out of the sink, quickly rinsed it off, and filled it to its rim with the liquids, more vodka than orange juice. It burned with a passion on its way down her throat and the tears rolled down her face. She took as many gulps of it as she could before she'd have to pause to remember to breathe. Within the next five minutes, the carton of orange juice was halfway gone and the vodka was gone. Just like him.

She was completely drunk and struggled keeping her balance as she made her way back to her room. She accidentally switched off the lights as she grabbed onto the wall near her doorsill. She walked as quickly as she could to the bed. It was a straight shot and she toppled into the bed, drowning in her sorrow. She pulled the covers over her body and passed out. Not even the moonlight hitting her face woke her from her dream.

The dream was with him. They walked down the streets of Konoha, older and from the looks of it, as Jounin. She had a ring on and her hand was intertwined with his. His face had matured and he was even more handsome than before. He was even taller too. He whispered into her ear, "Don't worry, I will never leave you. I love you too much to do that. I will be with you forever."

Then she fell back into consciousness. Her head ached and the hangover hit with a vengeance this time. But she lightly smiled. He knew...about last night. He would come back to her. She would just have to wait.


	2. The Favor

Akaya hated this new Hokage. He thought he was better than everyone just because of the title, but she just guessed everyone might let the power go to their heads. She couldn't even believe that he was even related to the former Hokage or his nephew.

Still, that's not what got to her the most. She hated that he didn't listen to the shinobi that worked hard everyday to protect the village that they loved and who followed his orders without question. But more importantly, he wouldn't listen to her.

It was understandable that he might not take her advice over a Jounin or ANBU, but to completely ignore her words infuriated Akaya.

Akaya sat on her couch and placed her pen on the coffee table in front of her. She had just finished her paperwork for her most recent assignment. It was a very basic one. Ever since the incident, the village had restricted its "difficult" assignments as much as possible. Even though she was always at the top of her class, she was given crappy assignments that anyone with a working brain could complete with ease. She was a chounin now. The one of two Konoha ninjas that actually passed the exam. And yet, she received better missions at a lower rank.

But she wasn't going to the Hokage to complain. She was going to request a favor, more or less.

She hated talking to the Hokage about anything, let alone the biggest favor she'd ever asked anyone to do. She knew it would be a waste of time to ask, but she had to try for his sake, as well as for the little sanity she still had.

Akaya got up from her couch and headed outside. She locked her front door and headed toward Konoha. The village, even with the chaos swarming around it, was tranquil. A light breeze flowed through the streets, and flowers were in full bloom. From bright pink to the deepest shade of blue, the flowers lined the village in perfect harmony. Akaya used to walk the streets this time of year and take in everything about the village, but now, she no longer possessed a sense of innocence. It didn't exist because she knew better.

She walked up the street toward the Hokage's offic. She had known the way for quite some time now. She knew where every hallway led and how each room looked. She gave a small smirk at the memories of the last Hokage watching Tajek and her together and in some odd way giving his approval. She flashed back into the reality because she knew that most of the Montair family was dead. The smirk evaporated within moments. Tajek was the Montair, she knew was alive besides his uncle. Now she had to convince the Hokage of that.

She entered the Hokage's building with butterflies in her stomach and absolutely no plan of action. She always had a plan of action, but this time, she couldn't think up one. She was going to approach the topic in the only way she knew how to: through her emotions. And that was what she feared the most. Her fear overcame her as she knocked on the door. She knew his fate laid her hands and in the Hokage's answer. As she turned the knob, she trembled a little and cleared her throat. This is the defining moment in her life. Yet, she already knew how it was going to end.

"Good afternoon Hokage," she tried her hardest to keep a respectable tone in her voice and to show no hesitation in her approach. "I have finished all of the paperwork you have requested me to fill out."

"Well, thank you very much, Aka...umm, anyways, I'm busy if you don't mind leaving." He never looked up from the papers on his desk as he spoke.

Akaya stood in disbelief, and before she knew it, she became furious and let loose. "My name is Akaya, Hokage. And I would like to request to be able to talk to you before I leave to do another pointless task." She clenched her fists as she stood waiting for his answer.

Sesoni waited outside the Hokage's office on a bench. He had originally wanted to speak with the Hokage immediately to get it over with. Although he was not completely fond of the Hokage, he had nothing against him. Sesoni had been waiting for several minutes when he had heard a familiar voice on the other side. He crossed his arms and smirked. "I didn't think she had it in her." He began to eavesdrop on the conversation.

He knew there was only one thing that got Akaya fired up enough to get her to speak out of turn. And that was Tajek. His day just got interesting.

"Tajek Montair is alive, sir. Is it not evident? Why would they kill the son if they already killed the Hokage? Wouldn't it make more sadness in the village if he was left alive?" She hadn't noticed that she was yelling until the Hokage looked up from his papers. He smirked in an unsettling way to Akaya. He was definitely a Montair. Tajek had that smirk. "That's right, you were his girlfriend and his first love. He mentioned you a lot." He chuckled as if nothing had happened. As if nothing was wrong. "You are Akaya and by the looks of it, you have changed immensely from his descriptions. Pretty none of less though. And bold and passionate too."

"He is still alive, Hokage. You know it too!" She was not at all amused by his antics and wanted the answer. "Well, is there going to be a search party or not?"

"No. That would be absurd. Everyone believes he is dead, and if I go by what one chounin says and her reasoning, this village will kill me." He went back to his papers. "You can leave now." He motioned toward the door and Akaya walked slowly toward it. She turned back toward him once her hand hit the knob. "You left out the part where I'm smart too. I pick up on things fast, and I know when I'm right and wrong. I'm right, and you'll regret ever denying me this favor. Because if he turns up dead, this village will kill you in the most gruesome ways. I guarantee it." Her voice was cold and empty. She didn't intend for her words to be a threat. More or less, she was trying to warn him.

She opened the door, slipped through its entrance and slammed the doors to grab the Hokage's attention.

Sesoni smiled unlike he had in a long time. Akaya was always quick-tempered and feisty, which is part of the reason why she got what she wanted. It was refreshing to see someone with that much passion. "You have always had courage, haven't you?" Akaya glanced to her right to see her friend properly sitting on the bench. "And you have grown up quite quickly as well. I obviously haven't seen you in awhile."

For a few seconds, Akaya brightly smiled. Sesoni had a way of calming her down. "So let me guess, you heard my conversation with the Hokage?" She couldn't believe Sesoni was here again. The last time they talked was months ago.

"It was hard not to, believe it or not." He chuckled for awhile, and Akaya laughed along. She hadn't even laughed in months.

The moment didn't last long as Sesoni began to speak again. "So, you know he is alive too, don't you?"

Akaya looked him straight in the eyes. She almost never did this, but she knew Sesoni was the only one who would listen to her side. "I know he is. I know this sounds crazy, but I think he has been trying to reach me."

Sesoni stood up and approached Akaya and placed his hand on her shoulder. "It is not crazy, but it's true. He is alive, Akaya. But he is in a state where he can not come back to the village yet."

He looked down at his friend. She had grown up so quickly. She had cut her hair to a much shorter length, so her ponytail no longer swooped to the side. She had grown a few inches taller, and her face had matured. All the baby fat was gone. Like everyone else, she was headed closer to death with each year while he would remain alive through it all. He snapped out of his thinking when Akaya softly spoke.

"I'm going to go train now, Sesoni. Thank you for knowing the truth and listening to me." Akaya turned to head down the hallway. "By the way, the Hokage can see you now." She gave him the biggest smile she could before she turned the corner.

Sesoni sighed and opened the door to see the Hokage at his desk. As he shut the door, he realized that the Hokage would listen to him on anything. Then his thoughts went to Akaya and Tajek. It reminded him of his love for Toku and how he'd do anything for her. Akaya did the thing she feared the most for Tajek, and it didn't pay off. He sighed once again. "Sir, I'm hear to talk about your nephew's disappearance."

_She'll thank me for this later._


	3. Happy Days

Akaya walked out of the Hokage's building with a heavy heart and a major headache. She had gotten absolutely nowhere with her conversation with the Hokage except that he might actually remember her name the next time that they met. She sighed and lifted her right hand up to her ponytail holder and pulled it down and out her hair. Her hair was a lot shorter than she thought it would be. She teased it with her fingers until she got it to part properly. It actually looked nice on her. At that, it caught more attention too.

She still had no idea why she cut it. She loved her hair long and how, no matter how hard she tried to prevent it, it always swooped over to her left shoulder. Now, it barely even made it into a ponytail. And now was different than then, and she knew that.

She passed a jewelry store and caught a glimpse of herself in the glass window's reflection. She had grown up even though she was only 15. She had more girly features and that shocked her. She had higher cheekbones and longer eyelashes. Her eyes had even changed. They were green with small golden specks spread across them like algae in a lake. She stood taller and stronger now too. However, she stole Himeka's clothes and had been wearing them to train in, so her changing features from the neck down barely showed. She knew this and smirked as she continued on her way.

She put her hands in her pockets and looked up at the sky. It was an elegant baby blue color with white clouds streaked across it like a canvas. Akaya paused and leaned her head as far back as she could. Days like these always took her back to the happy days. To the days when she could actually think straight. She finally sighed and let her thoughts wander.

_

* * *

She stood on top of the house with her adrenaline rushing. This was her first actual mission, and it made her stomach flip several times over. Faithe and Amaya were with her, but that's not what made her nervous. It was the fact that they were paired up with him. Tajek, the Hokage's son, was the leader of the group. He had been staring down at the sewers for about a minute now. So, in her friendliest voice, she spoke up. "Are you okay Tajek?"_

_She felt Amaya nudge her, and as she looked over her shoulder, she saw Amaya mouth "go for it". Under normal circumstances, her face would have turned bright red, but for some reason, she felt comfortable around Tajek. She simply nudged Amaya a little harder back and looked back at Tajek._

_"Huh? Oh yeah, fine. I always look this way, not easy being the Hokage's son." Tajek was completely poised and never even looked in her direction. She guessed it was because he was so accustomed to saying it._

_Akaya usually could spot Tajek when she was in the village. He always looked bored, and he almost never had a genuine smile showing. Now she realized it was because no one treated him as Tajek. More or less, they treated him like royalty._

_"Yeah it must be hard having all of that attention." She looked down at the sewers and then up at the sky. She never really received much attention at all, so she couldn't relate. But she still felt like she did._

_"Aw, well I've gotten used to it." Tajek looked over at Akaya. She looked back and smiled. He had such pretty eyes that she could not help but smile. "You're Akaya, right?"_

* * *

Akaya suddenly was bumped by someone. It was Aicirret. The two of them had met before and easily became friends, but Aicirret rarely ever actually visited the village. In fact, she hadn't been here for at least six months. Akaya couldn't help but smile because Aicirret came for a reason. And being of the age of 9 or 10, she trusted Akaya and would tell her why she was here even if Akaya never asked to be involved. Aicirret was like that.

"Hi, Akaya!" Aicirret hugged Akaya as if she were a long-lost sister. Akaya missed those type of hugs. She seemed to only get pity hugs these days.  
Aicirret knew about Tajek, and yet, she could almost care less. It sort of reminded her of herself at that age. Okay, almost identical to herself. "How are you Akaya?" Aicirret never missed a beat and almost never gave people time to answer her questions. "I heard you are a chunnin now! That's so awesome!" Aicirret's eyes had so much energy and life behind them. Akaya missed having eyes like those.

Akaya squeezed Aicirret back and let go of her friend. "Yeah, it is pretty impressive, isn't it?" She smiled lovingly toward Aicirret. In some weird way, Aicirret was her best female friend she had. Amaya used to hold that position, but recently, she had faded out of Akaya's life. And worst of all, she did it by choice.

She didn't want the drama that Akaya seemed to have. Plus, Akaya seemed to contain bad luck; however, Amaya didn't matter much anymore. She was still a genin because she stood behind someone instead of leading, which is why Akaya's whole team struggled in the chunnin exam. Yet, Akaya could not figure out why Aicirret took on the role of her best friend. Still, it was nice to have someone to talk to about anything for once. She could never do such a thing around Sesoni.

"It's amazing!" Aicirret paused to catch her breath and looked around the village curiously. "Hey, do you know where my uncle's at?"

Akaya paused for a moment before answering. She had forgotten that Sesoni and Aicirret were related. It was so obvious, but it always took her awhile to remember. They were complete opposites, and somehow, she was friends with both of them."He's talking to the Hokage right now. Hopefully, he'll have better luck with him than I did." She curled her hands into fists. It still got to her that the Hokage laughed at her request. His brother never would do such a thing. Neither would his nephew. The title of Hokage was one of high respect, yet this Hokage didn't even know the definition of the word.

Aircirret grabbed Akaya's wrist. "Hmm...it seems that she is still alive, but I'm not quite sure. It's like talking to a brick wall." Akaya burst out in laughter. That was probably the stupidest thing she had ever seen in her entire life. "And there's that beautiful smile. You should use it more often, Akaya."

Akaya looked at Aircirret and lightly smiled. "You know what, you're so right." Akaya placed her hands in her pockets. "Aircirret, we have some catching up to do."

Aircirret nodded and started following Akaya to her house. Akaya just smirked. Maybe it was just one of those happy days.


	4. The Fold

Sesoni stood in the threshold of the door. He didn't want to get involved in this messy situation. It wasn't smart too, anyways. As a demon, he had grown less emotional and more logical. But, he still had a soft spot for those in love. He had been there once and knew its power over a person's actions. It was actually quite intriguing that something as basic as love meant so much in a person's life to the point where it could change a reaction, even something as basic as a "no" from the Hokage on a request.

It was then that Sesoni realized he was doing this out of love. It was not a romantic love (anyways, she would never love him that way back), but a love for someone close to him. There were only a few people he actually cared about. Akaya was one of them, and Tajek happened to be another.

Akaya was one of the only people he had met that didn't judge him as a cold-hearted creature. Demons had emotions; however, unlike many humans, they knew how to withhold them or use them in a productive manner.

Sesoni shut the door behind him as he approached the Hokage's desk. "The girl is right, you know." He briefly paused to make sure he could word his next sentences right. "Now, I'm not saying she approached the situation in the right manner, but she has a point. This village will lose faith in you if he shows up dead and maybe even if he arrives alive."As he kept defending Akaya's opinion, he realized that she never could have approached her request any differently. She was naturally feisty and passionate about what she wanted or what she believed in, and Akaya seemed to always get what she wanted.

Sesoni smirked. He figured that it didn't hurt that she had a demon on her side.

The Hokage sighed and looked out the window. The sun brightly shined outside, which only showed off the blue sky more. Too bad it didn't fit this conversation at all. "I understand that she has a point, Sesoni, but my hands are tied. How am I supposed to protect this village if all of my best ninjas are on a wild goose hunt? I'm not willing to take that chance, and you should know more than anybody that sacrifices sometimes are needed in order to provide for the greater good."

There was creak from an open window. "That's a little belittling of you don't you think, Hokage? Bringing up an unrelated topic to get Sesoni rattled? What a pitiful attempt I might add."  
In the corner of the office closest to Sesoni stood Shin Ryu. He walked forward to be side by side with Sesoni. Shin and Sesoni had become friends ever since they were placed in the Bingo Books years ago, and seeing that they both were demons and seemingly immortal, it only made sense to befriend each other. Shin Ryu made another person that Sesoni cared about.

Shin shook his head. "I really don't think you are looking at the big picture here. Tajek has the potential to be one of the greats. He's just like his father except with less motivation, correct?"

The Hokage simply nodded. He knew his nephew all too well to argue against Shin. "What is your point then, Shin? Because this really doesn't help your case."

Sesoni and Shin were pretty much intellectually equal, and they both knew where this conversation was headed. Sesoni almost cracked a smile as Shin continued.

"That is," Shin slammed his hand down on the Hokage's desk to make sure that he was paying attention. "until she came along." Shin sat in the chair across from the Hokage, which was separated only by the desk. "Akaya pretty much changed his entire attitude around. He is just a genin now, but I guarantee you that since she has moved up in rank, that he would have followed. We need him back. And, so if an entire squadron can't look for him, allow just one of your ninja to leave."

The Hokage leaned forward to put his forearms down on the desk. "Which person do you suppose I let in the search party? I'll compromise. Anyone you want." He was cocky now. He saved himself from any entire search party, and only one would have to leave.

Sesoni spoke up quickly. "Well, isn't it obvious? Akaya will be needed, of course. And to protect her from any major harms, and seeing that Shin has Kage business to attend to, I, myself, will need to be with her."

Shin nodded his head in agreement. "There's a good compromise, don't you think? I mean, you won't need a chunnin as much as some of your elites."

It was a trap, and the Hokage fell right into it. He sighed, "Fine but you are responsible for her. If anything happens, it is entirely your fault." He didn't dare say no to the demons that everyone knew had a temper...even scarier, their tempers were controlled. "And you'll be telling her the news."

Shin stood up and turned towards Sesoni. "Exactly, you'll be telling her." He continued toward the doors and disappeared soon after.

Sesoni displayed a brief smile. "Well thank you, Hokage. I suppose I will leave now." He turned and started toward the doors. When he was about to exit, the Hokage spoke calmly. "Make sure she is okay when you get back. He'd kill me if she gets hurt."

"Do not worry. She has a demon with her and another looking out for her." He slipped through the doors and headed to the place Akaya was at the most: her house.


	5. Shin's Contemplation

Shin really didn't care much about the situation. It wasn't like anything exciting ever really happened to him anymore. He was a new Kage. It was nothing but paperwork. He thought about the enemies he might have been able to face if he went with them. But, he didn't really care much about that either.

More so, he cared about what was, inevitably, drawing near, and somehow, he felt oblidged to make sure as many people were ready as possible (Well, the useful ones anyways). However, Shin knew that some people's fates were sealed.

Akaya, on the contrary, had potential. The majority of the time, she had control her emotions and could redirect them in her fighting styles. Or at least could redirect them into her fighting styles. She had a flare, a fight, and a determination that many people tried to obtain. Unfortunately for them, you were simply born with it. Shin knew that from his own personal experiences.

Shin had watched Akaya fight a few times in various competitions and spars. Her techniques and attacks were sloppy, but nothing that could not be easily fixed. The best part about her, though, was that she fought with her instincts, and while using her instincts, she still remained intelligent. That was something else that could never be taught.

Not many young ninjas possessed the knowledge of when to attack or defend, when to use chakra or fight with brute force, and when to actually fight at all. Shin knew that her potential needed to be unleashed, and who better to teach her than two of the most powerful beings in existence?

Plus, she needed to learn how to defend herself better. Shin inhaled slowly and exhaled even slower. He knew that he had to protect her anyways. He has promised that much. He knew that she had become distraught since Tajek had been gone. He had heard the village's rumors from afar. He was the Mizukage after all. But he decided to visit Konoha on business affairs; in reality, this was his business affair.

He had to convince that Hokage to let Akaya go out of the village on the search party in order to make her a better ninja. He had no real intent on her going on the search. Tajek would eventually come back for her. That was not even an issue.

Shin had a week before he was to leave Konoha, and he planned to train her up in this short span of time. He also expected that until Sesoni got approved as the Raikage, he would pick up where he would leave off. She was an important element to them if she got stronger.

Shin was standing, semi-hidden, in an alley between two buildings, waiting for Sesoni to pass.

"You know, Shin, that is a horrible hiding spot." Sesoni stood next to Shin. He looked somber and much unlike himself, worried. "Shin, we can't tell her that she can search for him."

Shin began to ponder. He had almost forgotten that Akaya was pleading to the Hokage to search for Tajek. He leaned his head back until it tapped against the wall. "But, that doesn't matter now does it? She'll go looking for him, with or without permission. The least we can do is make sure Akaya is ready." He chuckled, "Well, you'll mainly make sure she is ready."

Something crossed his mind at that moment. He had never officially been introduced to Akaya. Even so, he knew tons of little facts about her. Like that fact that her favorite color was green, and Tajek planned to get her a jade necklace when he could afford it. Or the fact that she told Tajek that she despised Himeka and yet still cared about her. Or the fact that her favorite flower was a Tiger Lilly, and Tajek planned to give a bouquet of them to her the next time he saw her (He was planning to anyways).

It almost scared him how much Tajek talked about Akaya. Every detail of her. From her eyes to her nose to the way she held onto his arm tightly. But what surprised Shin more was that when Tajek left, he only asked Shin to do one thing: make sure that she was okay. Shin looked over at Sesoni. Thinking back to years ago, Tajek reminded him of Sesoni and Toku. The only difference was that Akaya was not going to die. Not if he had anything to do with it.

Sesoni decided to lean on the wall next to Shin. "I had a feeling you were going to say that. Too bad, you won't be able to train her much though. You might have actually liked her. She's pretty determined. She reminds me of you a little bit."

"Yeah, Tajek told me that too," Shin pushed off of the building. "We might as well get going." He started in the direction of Akaya's house.

Sesoni walked beside him. "I thought you were leaving it up to me...what changed your mind?" Sesoni smirked. He knew that Shin was headstrong but never lost his edge. So to completely disregard his own plan, shocked even him.

Shin looked up at the sky to take in the scenery. He looked forward once again to take note of the surroundings that would lead to her house. "I just thought I might need to meet her. And, Sesoni, I know what you are thinking. I know where she lives because Tajek nailed the directions into my head." Thinking back to it, Tajek seemed too calm when he left that day. Tajek trusted in him too much. That was obviously evident when he trusted him with his true love.

Sesoni shook his head lightly. "Figures he'd do something like that."

Shin and Sesoni continued onward toward Akaya's house while Shin's seemingly unshakable nerves started breaking down. Sesoni spoke up, "Trust me when I say this Shin. Akaya isn't judgmental. She doesn't really care that we are demons. She'll like you just fine."

Shin simply looked forward and spoke unevenly. "If she is anything like me, that will be what scares me."


	6. Unplanned Changes

Akaya knew Aircirret was just a little kid, blind to the major evils and sadness in the world, but she was a great ninja nonetheless. She rolled her eyes at the irony of it all because it just HAD to run in the family.

It wasn't that she was jealous of Aircirret per say, but she wished that she could be more like her. More or less, like a demon. The ability to control emotions would come in handy right about now. She went up to her door and lifted up the doormat to find the front door key. It was dull and lacked any sort of luster. She looked down at the key intently. She could now compare this key to her own life. She quickly got out of her daze and slid the key into the door knob. With a turn to the right, the door cracked.

"You know that in the time I've known you, I have never been inside your house."Aircirret looked over Akaya's shoulder as Akaya gradually opened the door. Akaya reached for her kunai with her left hand effortlessly and put that hand behind her back. Aircirret kept talking casually as they stepped inside. She knew there might be a potential fight for them tonight. Akaya reached for the light switch next to the door. As the lights flickered on, she turned her attention to Sesoni who stood right in front of her. She let out a sigh of relief and loosened her grip on the kunai.

"Sesoni, there is such a thing as courtesy. The least you could have done is just turned on the lights." Akaya looked at Sesoni puzzled. He made no effort to say anything.

"You were right, Sesoni. She does have a keen sense of danger."

Akaya saw a figure step beside Sesoni from around the corner. She had seen him once before from somewhere she could not place. She knew well of him though because of Tajek's descriptions. This was the famous Shin Ryu. She smirked as she approached the two demons with Aircirret tagging closely behind her after shutting the door lightly. "Normally, I would give introductions and have some small talk, but I am just guessing that that won't be necessary. Because you know who I am and I know who you are, Shin Ryu." Akaya simply glanced between Sesoni and Shin. "So,why exactly are you both here then?"

Shin grinned and turned to Sesoni. "I like this girl. You were right." He turned his attention back to Akaya. He could tell she had grown up a lot since Tajek left because the girl that stood before him now barely fit the descriptions that Tajek gave but a year ago. "You can call me Shin. Shin Ryu is just too formal in this situation. But no wonder everyone speaks so highly of you. You seemingly don't give them any reason to speak otherwise."

Aircirret walked casually past Shin and toward the coach in the living room around the corner. "You should probably just cut to the chase, Shin. I mean, no need to flatter her. She knows all of that already."

"Well, maybe, you should try being like her every once in a while. It might just make people like you more. You know that demons are not particularly liked, and you are a prime example why."

Akaya got it then. Aircirret took on the role of her best friend because she need someone too. She needed Akaya just as much as Akaya needed her.

Shin sighed. "Sesoni, I'll give you the honor, seeing that she actually knows you." Sesoni glanced in Akaya's direction and then at Aircirret's. He never could figure out why his niece was the way she was, but nevertheless, he put up with her because she was the last person on the list of people he cared about. "Akaya, after you stormed out of the Hokage's office, I spoke with him. We made a deal." Akaya looked at him puzzled. She hoped this conversation was heading toward the outcome she wanted it to. "He will allow us to search for him if you get stronger..."

Akaya butted in. "So I'm guessing that's why you are here."

She looked at Shin and Shin simply nodded. "I'm here for one week. I'm willing to train you if you are willing to learn."

Akaya knew that there wasn't really an option to say no. She wanted to find Tajek at whatever the costs. "I'll need to learn quickly then."

Shin chuckled. "I like your sense of humor. Now get some rest. You'll need it tomorrow."

Sesoni smiled at Akaya. "It won't be as bad as you think. Just do what he says. Do everything and anything he says." Sesoni and Shin exited the house without anything else.

Akaya turned to Aircirret who was halfway asleep on the couch. "Good luck, Akaya. From what I've heard, Shin's training is brutal. Then again, I don't think Sesoni's is much better."

Aircirret yawned as she stretched out on the couch. Akaya smiled lightly. "Stay here tonight, Aircirret. There's no need to leave." Akaya grabbed a clean blanket from a nearby closet and draped it over the girl as she closed her eyes and was quickly asleep. Akaya then turned out all of the lights and crawled into bed. She slowly drifted off to sleep, knowing that this was a turning point in her dull life.


	7. The Will of a Shadow

Akaya awoke to a shadow in the corner of her room. She kept her eyes half-way shut and crept her hand under her pillow to obtain a grip on her kunai.

She stayed as calm as she could because she knew that she may not like the other option. The figure stepped out into the single beam of light that flooded into Akaya's room, and it was Himeka.

Akaya sighed with relief, and then she let Himeka have it. "What the hell, Himeka? Could you not have waited until tomorrow to scare the shit out of me?"

By this time, Akaya's eyes are open wide, and she fell silent. She realized why Himeka wasn't replying. It wasn't Himeka; it was her shadow demon.

Akaya was never fond of the shadow demon, but apparently, the feelings were mutual. Yet, it always popped up when Himeka needed it to the most, which meant that Himeka had trained it well.

As Akaya sat up in her bed all the way, she realized that the demon had not moved since she first saw it.

There was a major detail of the shadow demons that Akaya could remember Himeka telling her: shadow demons mourn heavily after the death of their owner. It most appears to be a statue.

Akaya wondered if that applied to all demons. But, at the moment, there was only one demon in her room, standing lifelessly in the shadows. And, unfortunately, Akaya knew exactly why it was here.

Himeka was one of the best ninjas in the village, which was probably the reason why she was rarely exactly in it. Even the Hokage didn't know much about her, but nevertheless, he offered her the ANBU position, based solely on past accounts and her reputation; however, Himeka politely declined.

Himeka had always told Akaya that love was nothing to be mixed up in, and to some extent, she was right. Akaya, on the other hand, thought love only made you stronger. She would never admit that to Himeka though. It was a lot more trouble than it was worth. But as Akaya fell deeper and deeper into love, she figured out that Himeka had once been in her situation once. As a result, her scent was made up of heartache and cheap vodka.

Akaya's eyes teared up. She knew that minor shadow demons connect with one person at a time. Once he or she is gone, the demon diminishes. That is, unless the demon could make a connection with the person that their past owner loved the most. And Akaya knew Himeka cared about her even if she didn't show it very well.

The demon looked so innocent sitting there. It had transformed into the form it preferred: a wolf-like dog. It reminded her of one of the loyal dogs you would see with its owner while they walked through the village. If it weren't for the scornful memories she had with it, Akaya would have found the demon beautiful, even maybe on the brink of stunning.

It had crystallized silver eyes, which seemed to twinkle as streaks of light slowly passed onto them. It sat, lonely and depressed, not knowing what it was supposed to do. Not knowing where to go. Not knowing what to do next.

Akaya stared at it from her bed. It looked so different from the last time she'd seen it. It had grown up so much, but then again, so had she. She motioned for it to approach her bedside. "Here Akira. Come girl."

The demon came to her, and as soon as Akaya's hand stroked its back, the demon shifted onto the bed and to the foot of her bed.

It wrapped its tail around Akaya's feet, connecting with the bottom of Akaya's solid shadow. Akira then laid down into Akaya's shadow appearing to melt into the shadow itself. In seconds, it was no longer visible. Akaya smiled dazedly. "Humph...I guess that's how that works."

As Akaya drifted back into sleep, she remembered something she had heard Himeka say years ago. At the time, it sounded like nothing out of the ordinary. Himeka had been training for an upcoming mission. As she waltzed proudly and tiredly into the living room, Akira followed a step behind her. As Himeka plopped onto the couch, Akira sat on the floor beside her. You could tell they had bonded somehow during that day's activities.

Himeka had not realized Akaya was in the kitchen when she told her profound thoughts to Akira. "You are a very reliable demon, Akira." She scratched behind Akira's ear. "You're not at all like him."

Akaya had always thought that Himeka was just referring to a lost love, but that night, as she drifted in and out of sleep, it clicked for Akaya. Himeka fell in love with a demon. Now that she was dead, Akaya was determined to find out who he was. That was, of course, after she found her own love.


	8. Pay Attention to Details

Akaya hadn't slept well, and she really could have used all of the sleep she could get. Today was supposed to be the toughest day of her life. As she sat up in bed, she felt the throbbing headache take over. It wasn't a pleasant feeling, but she could have felt worse. It was nothing compared to some of her headaches caused by her recent training. She stood up slowly while rubbing her temporals. The pain was spreading quickly underneath her forehead, and as she glanced at the wall, she noticed that something was different about her shadow.

It was not the extended shape of her body's frame but rather the shape of Himeka. It was the shape of Akira's former master. Akaya then remembered the occurrences of late that past night and came to the realization that it wasn't a dream like she hoped. It was all too real, and she was now the official owner of a shadow demon. She had become more powerful virtually overnight.

Akaya rubbed her eyes as she looked out the window to see that the sun had barely touched the horizon. She heard a few little clatters and crashes in the kitchen. Aircirret was awake. Akaya sighed as she opened the door. With her luck, Shin Ryu would be here already. As she twisted the knob and pushed the door open all the way, she smirked. Shin Ryu was nowhere to be found.

"Good morning, Akaya!" Aircirret sing-songed her voice perfectly. Akaya pictured Aircirret as a morning person, but she no longer had any doubts about it. Aircirret flashed her pearly whites at Akaya and went back to trying to find something in the midst of the kitchen cupboards. Akaya briefly noted that she had wolf fangs on the top row of her teeth. "So, I'm surprised that Shin isn't here yet. I could have sworn he'd be the kind of person that would start training off at the break of dawn." She scratched her head and kept looking, searching cupboard after cupboard.

Akaya covered up her mouth with her hand as she yawned. She felt so light-headed that she thought she might just retire to her bedroom and sleep all day. She smiled at the thought, but she knew that could never be a possibility. Not with Sesoni. Not with Aircirret. Not with Shin Ryu. A clash broke her strings of thoughts. "Aircirret, what exactly are you looking for?" Akaya rubbed the back of her neck. It was tense and overloaded. Nothing was new there. "Whatever it is, I'm positive that it won't help you. I really don't have anything to eat in this place. Well, anything that would require any type of pot or pan, anyways."

Aircirret just kept looking. "Ah, Akaya, my uncle stopped by earlier to check up on me and brought us everything we'll need for breakfast." She pulled out a tiny skillet from the back of the last cupboard she had searched. "Here it is! This one will be the perfect size."

Akaya walked into the kitchen and pushed herself up and onto the counter top. It was cold as it hit her bare skin, but it was refreshing. She needed something to wake her up. "Guess I have to thank him to next time we meet then."

There was a knock at the door. The noise made Akaya's senses run wild. The pounding on the door mirrored the pounding the vibrations made to her head. She jumped down from the counter and advanced toward the door. She grabbed her windmill shriken that she had leaned against the couch in the living room. She knew never to be careless. You never know who will be at your doorsteps.

She approached the doorknob and opened it. As the door creaked open, no one was there. Akaya knew something was up and walked outside to look around the area. Suddenly, shriken landed at her feet. On one of them, there was a scroll. An explosion scroll.

"Crap!" Akaya sprinted inside the house, slamming the door to prevent severe damage to the house by the blow. The fire rose outside of her front door from the explosion and scorched the front door. Unfortunately for whoever was out there, Akaya loved fire attacks. It was her specialty in fact. She held a firm grip on her windmill shriken as she flung open the door to stand face to face with Tajek. He looked older and tired, but it was him nonetheless. He looked emotionless at her as he obtained a grip on her shirt collar and pulled her closer to him. "You know, I never really loved you." He whipped her around and threw her against a tree trunk.

Akaya was in momentary shock. She never thought that their reunion would involve a one-on-one battle. As Tajek came after her at full force, she quickly rolled away and managed to get to her feet. She backed up into an open area near her house. If she was going to have to face him, she might as well have the upper hand. "You didn't? I never would have guessed." She knew that he wasn't the same and that she had to participate in his mind games in order to buy time and spark a nerve. Verbal confrontations were the easiest way to do both at the same time.

"You wouldn't be able to see that back then. You are stupid and will never understand how I played you." He chuckled as he threw two kunai at her. "Good luck against me, dumbass."

She smirked. "Fine then." She unleashed her windmill shriken. "Flaming shriken jutsu!" The shriken lit up as flames covered the edges. The kunai hit the shriken and immediately fell to the ground. She tossed the shriken at him, and she bent down to pick up the kunai. She put one in her hand and one on her hip. It was cold against her skin, and it would probably make her bleed; however, she needed every advantage she could get against him. Even if it were something as simple as a couple of kunai.

Tajek simply grabbed the windmill shriken effortlessly by an edge and threw it back at Akaya's feet. "You forget that I prefer fire and lava attacks too, don't you? Do you even know me at all, Akaya?" He stood there, only about a hundred feet away. Did she know him at all? Sure, she knew he was talented in fire attacks, but she could match him. She was sure of it. "Tradushin."

She knew that technique. He did that before he ever started attacking his foes. It increased his chakra almost instantly. "You really think that that technique scares me, Tajek. Ha, you must not know me at all, as well." She had one chance to get her technique right. Hopefully, her training would help from it removing all of her chakra. "That's nothing. I bet you don't remember this."

She threw the kunai in her hand aside, and she focused all of her chakra toward her feet. She brought her hands to the center of her body. She spread out her legs slowly, and as she did so, one of the auras around her feet was red while the other one was blue. She suddenly shot out her arms as far as they could reach. Both auras twisted around her arms, each on their respective sides. Akaya smirked. "Ying-Yang Dragon Blaster jutsu." She moved her hands slowly up into the air. As she did so, the auras twisted into each other and formed into the figure of a dragon. Normally, before her training that she did after Tajek's disappearance, Akaya would have struck Tajek with the blast or had started out with its protective barrier to build up the dragon's power, but she figured out another way to use this technique. "I bet you have no clue what I'm capable of."

The dragon became tangible. It flew between Tajek and Akaya, preventing Tajek from making a drastic attack against her. Tajek sighed as the Tradushin unleashed as much chakra as he was going to get. "Neither do you, Akaya." Tajek went after the dragon, but the dragon flung its tail at him and wrapped Tajek into itself. Akaya walked up to both of them. "Tajek, why are you doing this?" She was pleading for him to have some reasonable explanation.

Tajek smirked. "Because I hate you."

At that moment, Tajek kicked at the dragon, and the dragon's power exploded into a huge burst of fire and ice. It hit both Tajek and Akaya. Akaya slid into the house while Tajek hit the ground, only meters away from the massive explosion.

Akaya tried to stand up but realized she was hopeless. She had a sufficient amount of chakra, but her ankle shot pain up her leg. She thought she had broken it, but she was sure that Tajek had won this battle. She sat up, ready to face her end. She saw him approaching and looked into his eyes. They were a dark purple.

His actual eye color was a light blue. She knew that color by heart. The person that stood before wasn't Tajek.

"You're truly pathetic, Akaya. I hate every detail about you." She couldn't look him in the eyes, rather she looked at the ground, at his feet. At his shadow.

She smirked. Akira was there, waiting to be called on. The element of surprise was the best element anyone could have, and seeing that she obtained Akira last night, no one knew of their bond. Tajek was right above her, his shadow swam over her. "Now Akira!" The demon pulled Tajek back off away from Akaya, and she took the form of a snake, wrapping itself around Tajek. Akaya knew Akira would come in handy. She just was lucky to remember her.

Akaya slowly lifted herself off of the ground. The pain was more manageable than she thought it would be. She walked toward Tajek and charged chakra into her left index finger. As she passed Tajek's left shoulder,she whispered into his ear. "You have no idea what I'm capable of, Shin. Penetrating touch jutsu." She slammed her finger into Tajek's throat,and there was a poof of smoke. The next thing Akaya knew she was looking down at a log.

Someone started clapping. Akaya twisted around to see Shin leaned up against a tree. "You are better than I thought. I guess you pass your first lesson. Opponents will use anything against you in a battle. Whether it is on an unfair fighting ground or disguising themselves as someone you would never want to face. That's why paying attention to details can save you in the midst of a battle. I made my clone look exactly like Tajek, except for his eyes. That was no accidental mistake, Akaya."

Akaya felt a nudge down at her hand. It was Akira. Akira had turned back into her favorite form of a dog. Akaya scratched behind her ear as a reward. Shin continued, "I guess you were the one with the element of surprise this time." He chuckled as he turned to head inside,"That'll be all for today. Let's go inside." Akaya nodded, and they walked casually inside, Akira a few steps behind Akaya.

Aircirret sat at the table, expecting both of them. She had set four place settings that were surrounded by a table of great smelling food. Sesoni sat in the chair across from her. Akaya smiled. She had forgotten that Aircirret had been here. "How'd you do Akaya?" She knew exactly how it went, as Akaya could tell, but she decided to answer anyways.

"I did just fine, Aircirret. I'm not dead,so that's a plus." The whole place came alive with laughter, and for once in her life, Akaya felt that there was somewhere she belonged. Well, it was the second time. She belonged in his arms, but this would have to do for the moment.


	9. On a Roof

They had stayed the entire day with Akaya. It was weird for her to spend time around a group of people for more than a few minutes. And, under any other circumstance, a few minutes would be if they were lucky.

But these three were different. They made her smile, and more importantly, they made her laugh. It was a shame that the whole village was frightened of them just because they were demons. Really, she enjoyed talking to them more any human that she had met. (Well, except for one.) They each were so intriguing that it was almost impossible not to want to talk to them.

Although everyone had left her house about an hour ago, Akaya still sat at the table, wondering where the day had gone. It was one of those days where she actually felt alive. She knew that Tajek would come back, but she was tired of waiting. She was tired of wondering. Above all, she was tired of hurting.

She slowly rose from where she had been sitting. It was almost mind-blowing how quickly a house became quiet. Deafly quiet.

Suddenly, there was a thud on the roof. Akaya's ankle still hurt from her earlier battle, but whoever was on the roof wasn't very smart to make the noise to begin with. She knew that whoever it was obviously didn't know her skill set at all. She walked casually toward her windmill shriken and grabbed her two kunai. She placed one on her calf muscle on her left leg and another in a pouch on her hip. She placed the windmill shriken in its respective sling on her back.

She then very quietly crept outside and climbed methodically onto the roof. As she gained her balance, she saw the familiar figure of Shin Ryu, looking up at the sky. She wanted to relax, but after his lesson today, she knew not to.

_An enemy will use anything against you._

She remained balanced on the slanted roof and pulled out the kunai on her hip. She charged at the figure and placed the kunai around his neck. She held it tightly to his skin. "Are you really Shin Ryu or are you just a spineless coward who won't show his real face?"

It shocked her how harsh her words could sound. Before his disappearance, she could never be taken seriously. Her words were soft and resound. Now, standing on the roof in the middle of the night, she sounded rough and harsh. At that moment, she knew that she had grown up. It was almost hard to process, but a voice broke her inner thoughts.

"So you did pay attention today." He paused to chuckle for a few seconds. "You are just as they say. You pick up on things fast."

Akaya almost loosened her grip, but something told her not to. "You expect me to believe you, here and now. Everyone left an hour ago. Why would go still be here?" She paused before she continued. She wasn't expecting an answer nor did she want one. She wanted the truth, but at the same time, she didn't want to hear it. She just wanted to know it. "If you really are Shin Ryu, then tell me what my favorite color is?"

She smirked. Tajek talked to her about telling Shin Ryu about them, but she knew that he did more than just mention her name every once and a while.

Shin Ryu sighed. "That is an excellent question to ask. You went on a personal route rather than a tactical one. Your favorite color is green. Now, if you don't mind."

He didn't really have to finish as Akaya pulled the kunai away from his throat and placed it back on her hip. She really didn't know what to do after that, so she bravely sat beside him. He intimidated her, just like he intimidated everyone else. However, she never let someone intimidate her to the point where she would avoid them. She would never have talked to Tajek if she did that.

Shin Ryu grasped Akaya's shoulder. "You know, I never could believe what Tajek said about you." Akaya looked over at him as he removed his arm from her shoulder and placed it behind his head. "He told me that you were perfect for him."

Akaya smirked as she looked up at the sky. The stars twinkled brightly, and Akaya was stunned at their beauty. "That sounds like something he'd say." Her voice's tone had completely changed. It was now soft and collected. She began to smile to herself. This was the tone she had used on the bench with Tajek.

* * *

__

_They both sat on a bench in the village. They had no real idea of what they were sitting there for. They weren't tired, but they saw the bench and decided to sit down anyways. _

"_Tajek, what mission did you have to go on?" He was a genin, so he participated in a lot of missions. Well, he went on them at least. She, on the other hand, just recently had passed the academy's exams with flying colors._

"_Just the routine stuff. Nothing that I couldn't handle." He smiled at her with his biggest smile. He couldn't think of the words to say next, so he just decided to ask a question. He wanted to know more about her, and that was the best way to find out. "So, don't you live with Himeka Hiromi?"_

_Akaya sighed solemnly as her demeanor changed. Tajek wanted to take it back but he couldn't. "If you consider seeing her once in six months living with her?" Akaya began to feel sick and found it hard to continue. "I hate her, Tajek." Now, tears were in her eyes. Her beautiful eyes. "I'm always alone. No one is ever there."_

_She fell into Tajek as he folded his arms around her. _

_He tried to comfort her next. He had never been in this situation before, but looking at his parents for an example, he quickly acted. He rubbed her back as he spoke. " I know how you feel, Akaya. Imagine beingt the Hokage's son. Not really having a name because of your father, who is rarely even home because of his job. It's terrible. But, Akaya, I promise that no matter what, I am always here for you. You will never be alone. I'll make sure of that."_

"_Really?" Akaya looked up at Tajek, and Tajek began to blush. He didn't mind it, though, and he used his thumb to wipe away the tears that were trickling down her cheeks. Her skin felt so soft in the palm of his hand._

_He smiled. "Really. Akaya, I promise you will never be without me for very long." He moved her face closer to his, to the point where their lips were only centimeters apart. He had kissed her before, but sitting on this bench it was different. He didn't know how, but he knew he would never forget this moment. And he knew that she wouldn't either. _

_He pushed his lips against hers._

_She relaxed and stopped crying. A smile slowly formed on the corner of her lips. The kiss eventually ended, and they shared an awkward silence as they looked into each other's eyes. They didn't know what to say so they didn't say anything. They simply smiled. They simply enjoyed each other's company._

_Akaya finally moved her hand onto Tajek's. She removed his hand from her face and held his hand in hers. She pushed her fingers in between the spaces of his hand. It was a perfect fit. "Would you like to walk me home Tajek?"_

"_I think I might." Both of their smiles grew as they left the bench and headed toward her house._

_Danter stood looking out of his office's window. It was high off the ground, so he could see out and over Konoha. Sometimes being Hokage had its perks. He saw the two, sitting on the bench. He loved the idea of Tajek having a girlfriend. He might actually have a drive to do things now. And as for his choice, he approved it. He had only officially met Akaya twice, but she was respectful and determined. Two traits that every shin obi should have. Two traits that every person should have. _

_He turned toward the last stack of paper work that sat on his desk. "Guess, I'll get back to this."_

* * *

Shin Ryu smiled. It was the first time she had seen him actually show his teeth when he smiled. "I'm really surprised that you didn't ask what he said. Most other women would probably be curious." He was trying to get that response and she knew it.

"Well, I'm not like other girls. Trust me, every other girl would have given up on him by now. They would have moved on by now. " She paused for a few seconds for dramatic effect. "As for not asking about what he said, I am curious, but asking about it would seem rude in my opinion. I would much rather you tell me because you want to rather than because you feel like you have to." She smirked because she knew that she had won his mind game.

"You'll be a great jounin. That was your second lesson. To play into an enemy's hand is one of the worst things you can do. In order to win a match based on intelligence, you have to make the enemy think that he has the upper hand. You have to make him think that he is in control when you have just been leading him your way all the time. You really are better than I thought you would be."

They both looked at the sky for a few moments. "Akaya, he loves you. He would love to see you now. Beautiful but powerful. Smart but sweet. Determined yet sensible. You've grown up, but you will always be the same person to him as you were the first day he saw you."

Akaya looked over at him. He was being serious about this. "I wish he would have said that then. If he had said those three words, I don't think this would be as difficult. Then I'd know that he would come back. Instead, I'm wondering about it all of the time." She couldn't believe that she was slipping her guts out to someone that she had barely met. Someone that could easily kill her.

Shin Ryu never made a promise that he couldn't keep, but in this case, he wanted to break it. For her sake. She was a great person, and as much as he hated to admit it, he liked her. He could never understand why Sesoni cared so much about her until he had interacted with Akaya. She was different from the rest. She captivated everyone that spent time with her. And now, when she felt distant from the world, no one had been there to help. He pitied her because he had been there before. It was hell. "He was going to that night. He was going to surprise you with a jade necklace and tiger lilies. He told me to make sure that you were okay while he was gone."

There was a long silence as Akaya looked at the sky. She hoped that Tajek was looking at it too. They would be connected somehow then. They would still have something in common.

"I never told him, Shin Ryu. I was too afraid to say it."

Shin Ryu simply patted her on the back. "You will. He will be back, and I guarantee that seeing you will be one of the first things on his "to do" list."

She smiled as she yawned. "I hope so. Unlike you, though, I have to get some sleep." She stood up, and the pain of her ankle took over again. She blew it off. She knew that she could handle this. "If you want to come inside, you can at any time. I'll leave the door unlocked for you."

She carefully got down from the roof and headed toward her bedroom. She changed into comfy pajamas and slid in between her bed and the covers. She easily dosed into sleep.

Shin Ryu crept into the house as quietly as he could. It was a little cold out, and the house was warm. He was headed to Akaya's room to ask a question about where he could lay down at. Being brazenly rude wasn't his style. He slowly opened the door to see her fast asleep in her bed. The first time he had seen Tajek after he had met Akaya, Tajek was overly excited. He said she looked like an angel, especially when she was calm and collected. As he looked at her now, Shin Ryu had to agree. And as he shut her door and sat on her couch, he realized that Akaya became the daughter that he never had. Even if he could only protect her in her lifetime, she was different, and everyone knew that.


	10. The Truth

By the time the sun rose the next morning, Akaya was up and ready for whatever Shin Ryu had planned for her. She knew it would be stupid to sleep in when she could train.

Before opening her bedroom door, she flipped her hair into a ponytail. It was still short, but it was growing out; however, in the back, some of her shorter hairs fell out and grazed the back of her neck. She dismissed it and progressed into her living room.

It was empty. Akaya found her shoes near the couch's side. They weren't flashy or in the best shape, but they were shoes. Akaya chose not to complain much about it. She shoved her feet into them and raced out the door.

She surveyed the area. No one was anywhere near her house. It was apparently too early for everyone. Akaya shrugged and made her way up to her training ground.

It was a lovely spring morning. The relaxing breeze blew through the trees and soon blew against her face. Akaya tensed up and froze. If she didn't have a pulse, she might have been mistaken by someone as a statue.

Akaya didn't want to believe it because it couldn't be true. It shouldn't be true. She knew that she had to be imagining it. The wind picked up its intensity, and Akaya knew that Tajek was near. His scent was too recognizable to her. She didn't realize that she had starting walking. Her brain was completely shocked by the fact that she could see him again. She didn't notice when that walk turned to a brisk jog, which quickly became a complete sprint.

The breeze now increased into a gust of wind as she climbed the hill that led to her training ground. She desperately hoped that her nose would not lose the scent. As she resided on the top of the hill, looking around the forest, the pain set in. Akaya knew that her ankle would be sore, but she didn't predict that it would take this long to become manageable. It apparently needed more time to rest.

But she knew that she may never get an opportunity like this to see him again. She saw the numerous trees that laid on the other side of the hill. It wasn't like she had never gone into a forest before; it was, more or less, the fact that she had never explored the one next to her house. That thought made her uneasy as she quickly darted in. She hadn't lost the scent yet, but it would eventually fade. And she knew it. She wasn't going to lose it before she found him.

It was several hours later when Akaya realized that she had no clue where she was at. She sighed solemnly as she realized that she had forgot to leave markers. She stopped sprinting when she realized that the scent had faded, and that she had been defeated by nature. The breeze stopped, leaving no trace of the scent.

She pushed her hands in her pockets, which caused a small smile to show on her face. Tajek always did that. "Did you need help, miss?" As Akaya turned around, she saw a man looking at her from only a few feet away. He was tall and muscular. Akaya could tell that he hadn't shaved in weeks, and his clothes reeked of wet dog and smoke. She was exhausted, but she knew that she had to get out of this situation. He was a sketchy character, and anywhere was better than here.

She remained calm. She can gain an advantage on an enemy if they think they have the advantage. The problem here was that he did have the advantage. "I'm fine, but thank you. I'm just strolling." She gave her best smile, hoping that would send him on his way.

He placed his hand on her shoulder. It was hard and cold. The hands of someone who has intentionally hurt people for his pleasure. "You look tired. You should rest at my cabin. It is only a quarter-mile away."

A chill went down her back. She tried to control her breathing. "Thank you for your offer, but I do have to be getting back to my village soon." She turned to walk in the opposite direction from where they stood. Unfortunately, he yanked her back into his arms.

She reached for her kunai, but he held her wrists tightly. He squeezed her wrists painfully tight until she dropped the weapon. She felt her heart dropped as he whipped her into the nearest tree, holding both wrists with one hand and slowly moving his other hand down her stomach and getting closer to her pants.

She started to panic. Tears welled in her eye ducts. She gave him a fight, kicking and screaming. Tears started to roll down her face. He was too strong, and her training was useless. She looked around for her shadow demon but saw Akira nowhere. As he put his thumb on the elastic band on her pants, she closed her eyes. She couldn't witness what was inevitably going to happen to her. She would have to embrace it and hope that it wasn't as bad as she thought it would be.

She paused in her thoughts as she choked up tears. She had never had sex. She was saving it. She was saving it for the person that had gotten her into this situation to begin with.

Suddenly, she fell and hit her forehead against the ground. She heard a thud hit the forest's floor. She was afraid to open her eyes as she sat up onto her knees and began crying again. Tajek stood over the man.

"Don't ever touch her again or I will fucking kill you." His voice sounded harsh towards the digusting creature. It was a tone she had never heard from him before. The man fell into unconsciousness as Tajek turned around to look at Akaya. He weakly smiled at her. She looked so frail and so beaten compared to her usual strong-willed self. And yet, as he looked down at her and traveled unknowingly closer to her, she was amazingly beautiful. He reached her side and noticed her swollen ankle and the bruise marks on her arms. "Are you okay?"

She simply shook her head and fell into his chest. He stroked the few loose strands of hair that fell out during the incident. She cried into him as he held her. She managed to form words as she was crying heavily. "How'd you find me?" She tried wiping her eyes, but Tajek lightly gripped on her hand and held it down as he used his fingertips to slide them off of her face. He kissed her forehead, and she lifted her head up to his lips. They both smiled in the kiss.

"Are you okay, yet?" His light voice approached his vocal chords as he stood up, helping her to her feet. He then realized that he had never answered her question. "Akira came looking for me. She knew she couldn't handle an ex-Bingo Book ninja." He looked down at the man. "Akaya, you had no chance. Almost no one had any chance."

Akaya didn't dare look at the man. She wanted to forget it and move on. She just looked at Tajek. He had grown into someone else. Someone who was now a teenager rather than a boy. Tajek glanced back at her and simply chuckled. "I'm guessing that you're surprised to see me."

She nodded. She looked at him for awhile before she began speaking. "I have something I need to tell you." She paused as Tajek intertwined their hands. She took a breath and began again. "I…I love you."

She stuttered over the words and looked down at her swollen ankle.

He looked at her and smiled. "I already knew that, Akaya." He lifted her head up to his level and kissed her on the lips. He missed that feeling more than anything. "I have always loved you as well."


	11. Unforgotten

Akaya tried to stay conscious as Tajek walked slowly beside her, holding her up with his shoulder. Her ankle throbbed with each agonizing step. The pain was overwhelming at times. Tajek could tell even though Akaya kept it bottled up inside that she was in serious pain.

Without realizing it, she had leaned her head on his shoulder blade to relieve the pressure that built up in her head. She slowly closed her eyes as they continued. Exhaustion had taken over her body, and there was nothing she could do about it other than keep walking slowly and stay awake. And she was doing both painfully so.

Tajek smiled at her unweilding determination. She was a lot stronger than he'd thought she'd be by now. Tajek heard a rustle in the trees and suddenly stopped to survey the area. As he stopped, Akaya collapsed. She heard his voice calling her name frantically, but it faded quickly. Everything went black.

Tajek sighed. He had hoped she would have lasted longer than she had. He had realized early on that her energy had been drained from her encounter. She wouldn't admit it, but she was in intense pain afterwards. Still, as he looked down at her now, he couldn't help but smile. She looked so peaceful lying there. She was always worrying about something, but now, she was in a state a simple tranquility. Her body needed the break.

Tajek bent down and lifted her bridal-style into his arms. There was no use in trying to wake her up. She was out cold, and she would probably stay that way for the next few days. He knew why too.

Shin Ryu had taken his request to heart. Shin Ryu was tough in his training, even his father had said so. She must have gotten to her third lesson by now. He smirked as he briefly glanced down at her. He could tell that she had gotten immensely tougher, but her skin still felt smooth against his.

"Kid, I was beginning to think that you really weren't coming back." Shin Ryu stood against a tree behind Tajek. It amazed Tajek how calm Shin always was about everything. Even though Shin hadn't seen him in over two years, he was collected. His voice's tone was smooth and silky.

"That was you back there, wasn't it?" Shin simply nodded and smiled as if he had been reacquainted with a close friend. In retrospect, he was.

Shin looked at Akaya's face. She looked completely lifeless, and her coloring was fading fast. But, then again, this was her third lesson. She had embraced her fear better than he thought she would. Tears were a natural occurrence and at that, exhausting. "Tajek, you're lucky to find a women like her." They're as rare as it gets. She's loyal, committed, and hard-working." He paused and sighed as he gently wiped dirt out of her hair. "She's in bad shape. Come here."

Tajek nodded and did as he was told. Shin grabbed a hold of the two teenagers, and he started to focus his chakra to flow evenly through his body. "Tajek, if you have to throw up, hold it until the process is done." He looked up at the sky briefly before closing his eyes.

"What process?" Suddenly, everything went black around Tajek, and his legs went numb. This numbness, however, was a different feeling to him. It was as if the world around him was spinning rapidly. Within a few moments, his vision came back. They were standing in front of the building of the Mizukage. "How the fuck did…"

Shin glanced harshly at him. "There is no need for such language. That process was part of another ability available to me as a demon. Sesoni has this ability as well. It can instantly take me back to the two places I've visited the most over my lifetime. It is an excellent technique really." He smiled showing his two demon fangs on his top row of teeth. "I might even teach it to a mortal one of these days." He sighed as he approached his building. Unlike the Hokage's building, this one seemed like a home. "You know I built this when I was young. It's been awhile since then."

Tajek closely followed Shin, holding Akaya firmly in his arms. She fit so perfectly there. She nuzzled up against his chest finally showing a sign of life after passing out. Shin and Tajek quickly walked inside the building and into a bedroom. "She can stay here for now."

Tajek gave no evident reply. He simply approached the futon at the far end of the room. He lightly placed her down into it. She looked like a complete mess, but she looked calm and content. The way she had been before he had to leave the village.

It was virtually against his own will, but without leaving, the village would have been in grave danger. He stood there looking down at Akaya not sure how their next conversation was going to go. She'd have plenty of questions for him. He was absolutely sure of that. She always wanted to be informed about as much as she could. That was one of many things that made her cute to him.

Shin stood in the doorway. He knew that feeling of longing. The thought of being so close yet so far away. "So how long has it been for the two of you?"

Tajek tried to smile, but the concern did not seem to leave. He knew she'd be fine, but there was always that slight chance that she wouldn't be. He wouldn't be able to live with himself with that happened. "It's been two years, three months, and five days since we've seen each other."

He counted every day they were apart. It was alittle weird to him at first, but after some time, it was what kept him going. She was the small hope and joy that was left in his life.

Akaya awoke to her eyes filled with immense haze. Her head ached severely as she tried to rubbed her eyes to get rid of the haziness. She sat up in the futon and glanced around the room. It was awkward waking up in a place she'd never been before. A place she didn't recognize.

Still, it was a quaint, pretty, little room that was decorated with beautiful silk curtains and rich velvet sheets. She was on a spring futon that was the color of the ocean's deepest blue. It made her feel as if she was being swallowed up whole, destined to drown in its comfort. She didn't particularly like it, but it was a refreshingly new atmosphere. She planned to enjoy it.

"How long have I been out?" She knew that someone was standing right outside her doorsill. Akira was playing with their shadow as it bled through the crake. Akaya giggled at the sight. Akira looked so innocent that it was scary.

Tajek slowly entered the room. To reveal a bag of dried fruits. "You've been out for about four days now." He looked at her tenderly, "But you were supposed to be out for another week minimum. You're something amazing, Akaya."

He tossed the bag to her, and she caught it with ease. "Oh, but you need to see Shin as soon as possible. He said that it is extremely important." With those words, he kissed her on the forehead and left.

Akaya slowly stood up but fell to the floor. She pushed herself up and hurried out of the room.

"Going somewhere?" Shin stood behind her, firmly gripping her shoulder to prevent her from moving. "Your training isn't over yet."He let go of her shoulder and walked in front of her. She eagerly followed. She was silent and exhausted, and she knew this day was not going to be easy.


	12. The New Knowledge

From the looks of it, not many people decide to read this fanfic, but I love the premise. I also love of the characters, so I must press on xp. From this chapter forward, I have built it on premises and ideas that never fully developed on the site. Enjoy! And as always, any reviews are helpful ones. (: They are motivators for sure! Hope you enjoy the rest of this little series. -Hot Mess 12

* * *

As much as Akaya wished she could stop training, she knew it wasn't an option. Her ankle had healed over the days she was unconscious, but it was still stiff. Most of her cuts and bruises had been tended to as well. She weakly smiled knowing Tajek did that. As her shoes touched the slippery, wet ground, she caught a glimpse of Shin standing tall in the distance. He had a calm demeanor, and somehow, that made her uneasy. It was as if he feared nothing. But Akaya knew everyone feared something. Demons were no exception. He was just good at hiding it.

Suddenly, Akaya heard the sound of metal being released from his pocket. She quickly pulled out her windmill shriken and deflected the kunais that approached her from the front and right side. By habit, Akaya knelt down and picked them off the ground and shoved them into her pocket. Any advantage would help her in a battle. That was one of the lessons she learned from Shin early on, and she intended to take the lecture to heart.

Instinctively, Akaya knew the Shin had moved from where he had originally stood. Within the last few hours of training, Shin made sure that she could track a person with a simple chakra technique. It was a difficult feat to achieve, and Shin had been impressed to see how quickly she had mastered the trait. She almost learned it as fast as a demon. Akaya smirked as she felt the chakra signature from the kunai he had thrown. He was behind her now, waiting for her next move. She quickly did hand signs. "Ying-yang dragon blaster: dragon barrier." Rapidly, a blue barrier circled around Akaya to protect her for many attack options Shin had available in his disposal. However, Akaya was still cautious to unleash only small amount of the dragon's power out because she knew Shin was intelligent and had seen her fight before. He would know that taijutsu attacks would break the barrier.

She glanced down at her feet, seeing Akira fold between her feet into a shadow. Akira was yet another minor precaution. She heard the high pitch squeal of nails cutting against something. Before she was able to turn around, Shin had placed a kunai around her neck. Akaya knew that Shin was incredibly fast, but she never realized just how fast he was. However, his approach was only a minor setback. He had made his move, and now it was time to make hers.

And although long range attacks were her forte, hand to hand combat was her favorite. The kunai he had chosen was dull, probably because he used the sharp ones initially. It was only sharp to the point that a slight pressure would break her skin and not kill her. That is, if she timed it right.

Disappointedly, Shin looked down at his pupil. She was like a deer under a arrow: silent and dead. He thought she would have faired better than this. He began to speak firmly. "You let your guard down. That is one rule that must always be followed. Otherwise, you are as good as dead."

Akaya just spoke confidently. "Who ever said I let my guard down." As if almost on cue, Akira materialized gripping Shin's wrist long enough for Akaya to slide away from the kunai with nothing but a small scratch-like mark. Akaya had briefly forgotten that the barrier was still up before she tumbled back from Shin. She watched as he set fire to the kunai, and Akira quickly descended back into Akaya's shadow. Her owner frowned, knowing that fire was something shadow demons couldn't withstand. But it came as no surprise that Shin knew that. He had been around longer than anyone else she knew.

She frantically did hand signs, but Shin quickly locked tightly onto one of her arm from the front, restricting her chakra flow. "Nice move, kid. But no one is here to aid you now."

Akaya simply closed her eyes in fury. Shin never referred to her as a kid. It was because she was never a child in his eyes. She was a bright pupil and an useful ally. Rage engulfed her senses as she eyed the person in front of her. To her surprise, there was a green aura around his body. It was a chakra aura, and somehow, she could tell that Shin was anxious from this aura.

Shin just saw this new technique that Akaya discovered. It felt eerily familiar to him. As if he had been through it before, but he knew that he hadn't. And that was slightly making him anxious. He had never seen this specific technique before, and if it got out of control, he wasn't exactly sure how to stop it. Even so, he loosened his grip on her arm. "Calm down, Akaya."

Akaya breathed out slowly, knowing that whatever was going on was a new technique she would have to master. It had been quite eventful for her lately. Her emotions simmered down into a peaceful demeanor. "Okay." This new eye technique was somewhat scary to her. She had never really learned that such a technique existed. And what really shocked her was that she didn't know how to make it stop.

Shin held onto her shoulder and got down to her eye-level. "Relax. You need to relax. Any new technique can be a daring task to handle. That's another lesson you must learn." He smirked. "That lesson wasn't supposed to happen today, but it can't be helped now."

* * *

Tajek stood at a distance, watching Akaya's panicky behavior. It wasn't like her to react in such a way. Something was wrong, but from his distance, he wasn't exactly sure. He was about to race out onto the field, when he saw Shin's smirk. He loosened up to the idea of letting Shin handle the situation. He had a lot more experience than Tajek had anyways. And if he trust her with Shin before he returned, he could now as well. As he kept looking on, he felt a familiar presence emerge from the house. "It's about time you came back around her, Tajek."

"Nice to see you too, Sesoni." Tajek kept his eye directed on Akaya even though he was glad to see his dear friend. There was an immense tension between them that Tajek couldn't figure out.

Sesoni just stood there near his young friend. He was encouraged that Tajek was back because he knew that his village needed him. But to approach that topic at the moment was tricky. So he avoided it. Much like Shin, he knew the inevitable was going to happen to Konoha, but unlike his ally, he was already informed that it happened. He looked out at Akaya in her distress. How was she going to take it? "She'll be fine. Thanks to you."

Tajek just sighed. "What's wrong?"

Sesoni simply sighed back. "Nothing gets past you, does it?" He paused as he looked down at his now grown-up friend. When he left, he was a young boy who was only a tender genin. Now, two years later, he was a strong man who came back to who made him push himself so hard in the first place. There was no reason to beat around the bush on such a sensitive topic. "Fine, I'll tell you. But you can't balme this on yourself."

"Fine." Tajek looked at Sesoni for the first time. He looked battered, only beaten. His expression was somber, and whatever he had to tell Tajek was not going to be pleasant to hear. "Fine, I won't blame myself."

As the words poured cautiously out of Sesoni's mouth, Tajek's face dropped in complete shock. His hope, that because of Akaya had been at an all-time high, had quickly plummeted. The thing he was trying to avoid had showed up where his heart had been. He looked out at Akaya, who had immensely calmed down. He just looked out at her. For all of the pain he was going to experience, she would experience it tenfold. Konoha was the only home she had ever had. It was where she had planned to stay and defend until her death. She wanted kids to grow up in the academy and race through the streets. And now. Any dream of being in Konoha was shattered. Konoha as they knew it was no more.

And all Tajek could think about was Akaya.

Akaya closed her eyes and concentrated. If anger activated them then being calm would trigger them off. Well, that was her theory. She opened them up to see Shin smiling encouragingly. Everything was back to normal with her vision.

Shin pulled lightly on her ponytail. "See. Everything works out. You just have to focus."

Akaya smiled brightly back at her teacher. "Thanks. Guess I'll have to play with my personalized technique later."

They both traveled closer to the Mizukage's home. As soon as Tajek was in her view, she raced to meet him. She noticed that Sesoni was there beside him. And that was when she stopped running and started sprinting. The look on their faces showed that something was completely wrong.

She feel into Tajek's chest hard. She clinged onto his neck as tightly as she could. His hands pushed her further in. "Calm down, Akaya." "What's wrong?" She didn't want to hear any lies. She needed the truth, even though she knew that it was going to hurt.

Tajek just held her as he looked at Shin and Sesoni. Somehow, he knew they both knew what the news was. It wasn't a shocking feat for them to believe. And so, following in their footsteps, he stayed strong and let Akaya melt in his arms. She wasn't crying. She was just afraid of what was to happen. She had already been through one tragedy; another one was not in her agenda. And yet, here she was, feeling as weak as she had two years ago.

Tajek just kissed the top of her head before he attempted to speak. "Konoha was attacked once we left." Akaya's heart sank. She had a horrible feeling that she should have been there. She should have defended her home. Through his shirt, she spoke as loudly as she could. "Who survived?"

Tajek's eyes began to water. It wasn't for himself; it was his love. She was faltering. He had to help her stay on her feet. However, he stayed calm and collected when he spoke. "As far as we know, not many."

And with that, Akaya was submerged in his arms, and tears trickled down her face.


	13. Concentration

Concentration

Akaya stood in the shower still stunned at the events that happened just hours before. There was an ever-present guilt building up inside of her. She was supposed to be defending the nation she hailed so heavily from. Her loyalties were misplaced for one second, and the whole village is destroyed.

The steam started to take over her scenery. She was comforted in the fact that she was submerged in her own space for awhile, if only for a half hour maximum. It gave her a chance to think about what her next move was going to be. She grasped her shampoo in her right hand and poured it into her left hand. She carefully set the bottle down, but as it hit the slippery surface, it fell onto the shower's floor. She simply ignored it. She listened as the water hit hard against the plastic. It was soothing and even more so, distracting.

She lathered the shampoo and rubbed it softly and slowly through her hair and onto her scalp. She leaned her head back into the stream of water and let the soapy water run down her back and down into the drain. She let her hands go to her side and contemplated staying here with Tajek and the others or running back to her home to access the damage done. She deeply sighed and shook her head as she reached for the bottle. She took a hold of it, and slid the shower door open, placing it on the floor in the process.

She quickly and discreetly glanced in the mirror and noticed a fogged figure standing in the corner of the bathroom, away from any view of her except for a reflection from the mirror itself. She moved back into the shower, trying to find a potential weapon if need be. She looked at the small razor on the railing. She was screwed in hand-to-hand combat and in weaponry. So instead she slowly let the steam allude more of the mirror before summoning Akira silently and effortlessly while pretending to grab the bar of soap for the corner of the shower.

If the person decided to come any closer, that would be the last of them. Akaya wasn't going to hold back especially when she didn't know who was a threat anymore. She tried to wipe the memory away as she reached for the conditioner, but the knowledge she acquired was too strong to overcome. Even so she kept a keen eye on the blurry figure standing or waiting for her.

Akaya had learned from Shin's teachings that the best offense was a strong prepared defense. Gaining intelligence came from observing, so she went on with her routine in the shower, overanalyzing the situation like she always tended to do.

_Akaya nostrils filled with the terrible stench of the sewers as they paced cautiously inside. Tajek, their ring leader, entered first. From the way the smirk rose to the corners of his lips, he was well prepared for this mission. Akaya smiled back at the rest of her comrades before she jumped down from the opening of the sewer. If he was so prepared for this mission and whatever it was going to lead to, she was going to have to act prepared as well._

_As she fell into the dark underground system, she noticed the black fog that led straight into the center of the sewers. Amaya uneasily fell in, which made Akaya feel uneasy. Faithe was placed as a lookout from above while Amaya joined the three-person team. Calmness and confidence were never her strong points. In a battle, she was always the weakest link, which is why she stayed so close to Akaya._

_Akaya took a slow relaxing breath as she focused on knowing what they were up against in the sewers. First off she knew that something wasn't clogging up the sewers; somebody was. That in itself eliminated the simplicity to the job. Akaya also judged that by the immense amount of the fog, it wasn't an inexperienced punk trying to pull a stunt. This act was the work of an impressive ninja. Three academy students and one genin couldn't handle this caliber of a ninja, but as she looked over at Tajek's stern face, she realized that he was no ordinary genin. That was to be taken into high accounts. She had recently perfected her new and powerful ninjutsu, but that was a last resort. It drained way too much of her energy for it to be a thought in battle. Apprehension started to build in her stomach as she tried to stand straighter than she already was. Showing fear would only worry Amaya, and that was not an option. She simply turned toward her friend and smiled caringly and looked onto Amaya with reassuring eyes._

_Amaya was scared. She looked at the small amount of sewer water trickling down in a stream and disappearing behind fog. She reached for her hair, which she slowly twisted around her finger timidly. That was Akaya's tell-tale sign that something was wrong with her friend. She was becoming a bundle of nerves right in front of Akaya's eyes, and as Amaya started to speak, there was a definite quiver in her voice. "So seeing that you have a keen sense of trouble, Akaya." Her eyes started to glisten, and Akaya gripped her wrist tightly and pulled it down to her side slowly and lovingly. "How many are there down here?"_

_She smirked as confidently as she could. Appearance was crucial when someone was falling apart on a mission. Being the rock strong foundation made their surroundings calmer. "Judging by their signatures, maybe three or four. It's nothing we can't handle."_

_And with that, Amaya eased and smiled back at her close friend._

_Tajek tried not to look over his shoulder at Akaya, but temptation overcame him. She was right about how many nin there were. It was highly impressive that she knew about signatures, let alone know how to read them. The only reason he learned was because of his father, who was one of the best at the trait. However, you could only be taught this by a demon first. That was in part because humans took longer to teach than demons did. Demons were astronomically quick at putting up on ninjutsu of any kind which made them difficult to defeat. In addition to their awareness, they were born knowing signatures, and thus, humans had learn from teachings instead of by instincts._

_Even so, humans really couldn't scratch the surface on the signatures. Not even Hokage Danter, renowned for his use of demon-like abilities, could teach it to his son. But when Shin stepped in and helped his father finish the lessons on signatures, Tajek had eventually picked up on it. That took almost two years to master. So how did a low class academy student know how to do it so perfectly? And even though he wasn't about to admit it to his inferior, he was baffled by her._

_He had seen her a few times throughout the village, but up until now, she had never caught his eye. Though looking at her now, he couldn't fathom why. Her body was in tip-top shape for an academy student. She had obviously trained for this line of work since she could walk. She wasn't thin and slender to the point where ribs could be seen like most girls her age. Instead her muscles showed under her straight legged capris and skin-tight tank, and her arms were toned to withstand damage that many other young Shinobi would easily succumb to._

_However, the real bewilderment came when looking at her face. Her hair cascaded into brunette twists in her long ponytail braid, and her breathtaking green eyes were lit for adventure and challenges. Her smile comforted even the weakest of her comrades, and her cheekbones only highlighted the twinkle it gave off._

_He quickly shook off the crazy notion of affection as he refocused on the task at hand. Even though he was lazy, he was rather intelligent on missions. She was nothing more than a distraction that he must overcome. Distractions were an unnecessary risk at the moment, and since he was the leader, he was to make the decisions. Still lingering thoughts popped up, and he needed to be with her alone without compromising the objective. He quickly turned to Akaya. He could impress her with his ninjutsu if she saw the magnitude of chaos it would ensue, but he wanted to see what she was all about first. That would be a last resort. He spoke with as much authority as he could muster. "Do you think two of us can handle it?"_

_As Akaya turned, her braided ponytail flipped over her left shoulder and her side bangs grazed the side of her face perfectly, causing Tajek to blush lightly. He hoped she couldn't see it. "Well, which one of us is going with you?" She smirked, causing her dimples to emerge. "Because I'm sure you won't be hanging back here."_

_Amaya still timidly smiled. "Isn't it obvious?" Akaya already knew who was going with him; she had just hoped that he would have said it instead of her friend. "Kick some butt, Akaya."_

_Akaya smirked while putting her thumb up to her friend. "When don't I?" She pointed up above them. "If we don't come back in twenty minutes, you and Faithe need to get a more experienced team to get us."_

_Tajek just watched the scene unfold. They seemed closer than they let on at first. Amaya and Akaya knew the roles they played in their friendship, which in turn meant they were the same when it came to missions. Amaya stood beside Akaya's leadership and judgments without question, whereas Akaya pressed boundaries that normal academy students wouldn't dare try. She was mentally prepared to take control and confident enough that failure wasn't an option. Tajek just lightly smiled at Akaya. He knew now why she never caught his attention: the qualities he liked in a girl were not from the surface._

_Then Tajek started bluffing. Emotions were only a stupid thing that got in the way of his objectives. Shin had taught him that law during his brief lessons with the demon. Focus was the key to any victory. "We'll let's go then." He pointed in the direction of the fog._

_Akaya nodded as she waved towards her best friend. And with that, she and Tajek stealthily headed into the foggy darkness._

_Amaya waved back until their figures were eaten by the disorientation in front of her. She smiled brightly now. She could not believe how easy that was; her own personal mission was complete. Amaya looked up to find Faithe peering down into the nasty sewers. "So, Amaya…it worked right?" Amaya started to lean against the filthy wall, not realizing how horrible her surroundings were. Akaya was oblivious to her feelings, but her friends knew it. Unfortunately the only way those two were going to become close was through a mission, but Amaya couldn't blame Akaya. In this village, it was impossible not to end up with a Shinobi. It was pure irony that she would like the most reclusive one that everyone liked. But maybe she would change his mind. Maybe she was as different from the rest of them as Faithe and Amaya thought she was. "Let's just hope she doesn't screw it up."_

_Akaya had a bad feeling about charging into the battlefield without the slightest game plan. If anything went wrong, they'd have to last for twenty more minutes, probably longer. She ran alongside Tajek as they crept closer and closer to their target. Something didn't feel right, and that's when she saw it. The puppet lining was thin, but it was a lethal red, meaning someone had already died at the hands of the specialized trap. It meant one of two things: ceremonial sacrifices or blind stupidity. And she felt the booming sound of footsteps hit the mushy water. She stopped suddenly and jarred to the left, yanking Tajek's wrist to follow her into a small adjacent tunnel that could only fit people of their size. As she did so, she threw a shriken from her belt into the wired trap, causing it to explode by contact._

_She turned to Tajek who didn't seem at all fazed by her quick reaction, which meant he wasn't impressed in the least. He whipped into another tunnel to their right and secured his hand in hers as he headed in that direction. He ducked down low, pulling her gently to get to his level. He covered her mouth with his hand and looked down at their hands. He wondered when he had done that, and quickly released it. Now wasn't the time for such romanticism. He had a job to finish, and he was stupid for putting her in harm's way. He heard footsteps approaching rather slowly and knew it was his time to impress. "Stay here and lay low, Akaya. I'll handle this."Akaya softly sighed while nodding. She felt no need to argue with her team leader even if the idea was painful to hear. He thought she was too weak to finish the job alongside him. Well then she'd have to show him otherwise with her blaster. As she watched Tajek leave their niche and head toward their opponent, she began charging her Ying-Yang Dragon Barrier, doing the signs discreetly. She'd step in if he needed help. That is, he could handle it for a few minutes._

_Tajek threw a fire-tipped kunai at the shaded figure headed towards him. It flew by the man's head, and the fog was completely eliminated. The man simply laughed at him. His raspy voice made Akaya shiver down her spine. Judging by his voice, he knew who Tajek was and he didn't care to go easy on his opponents. "Nice trick, kid." He smiled with rotting teeth, making Tajek tense up a little and made Akaya overanalyze again. Shinobi normally were well-groomed and sharp in appearance. Even in this place, Tajek looked noble and presentable. This guy, however, seemed to be rotting away beneath his tattered clothes. How was he so easily able to manipulate the sewer system to clog over? His voice refocused her to the battle commencing. "Now why in the world would the Hokage's son be sent to his death?"_

_Tajek stood prideful and straight against his foe. She was watching after all. If he could talk the talk, he could walk the walk. "You seem like a nice guy and all, but my mission is to unclog the sewers that's all."The man seemed agitated by Akaya's observations. Her chakra was starting to glow. She pulled back. The faint glow of the barrier was growing more apparent by the seconds. This could be bad if their foe was observant, and judging by his presence alone, he was. She hoped that he would ignore it, at least for the time being. The man started charging his chakra at an immense speed to his fists. "Well, runt." His sinister smirk got to Tajek. He was being serious in every way. His intention was to kill, and no one was going to stop him unless they beat him. That gave Tajek a bad taste in his mouth. "That's what my team left for you. If you look down into the middle of the system, you would see that the clog is a huge build-up of our chakra, which creates the biggest explosive matter there is known to any Shinobi. Enough so that this whole village could be gone by this evening." Tajek's fists started shaking in anger. This guy saw him as an easy target. Telling him the plan just meant that a brutal murder would follow. Tajek gave his best unnerved smirk. Akaya quickly allowed the barrier to form in full force as she saw the man pull signs from his signs. She had seen Himeka did the same ones in the midst of a battle. They were rare and hardly seen by the human eye: darkness signs. She leapt in front of Tajek, pushing him to the floor and letting her barrier absorb the blows that would've killed him. The barrier grew in size by the consumption of massive chakra. She smiled proudly. The dragon fusion process was only going to take a couple more minutes thanks to her cocky opponent._

_Tajek looked up at Akaya. She was smart too. And she risked her well being for his. He owed her one that was for sure. He stood up and admired her chakra barrier. The problem with it was that taijutsu wasn't going to be absorbed, but in a way, that was a positive set back. He was great at taijutsu attacks especially if fire was involved._

_The best way to win a battle and complete a mission was gathering intelligence. She didn't need to know about her foe as much as the clogging. She needed to know how to stop it. She felt her windmill shriken against her shoulder blades. She gripped it and whipped it around steadily. She needed to be a distraction._

_The figure kept his cool. "So I guess this pretty piece of meat is your girlfriend. Never guessed the son of such a high position to be with such a plain Jane."_

_Akaya sighed. She came up with a comeback, but before she could say anything, Tajek stood beside her. His glare was piercing, and for a second, Akaya just look dumbfounded at him. "She's not plain by any means." He let a chakra fire rage around him. "And I'll protect her like she protected me. So don't even think of touching her."The man walked slowly forward, allowing only meters between them. His eyes were pitch black, and his demeanor quickly went from scary to terrifying for Akaya. Yet she didn't change her expression. Tajek was keeping her calm in some weird way. He quickly went into attack mode at this foe. He threw a punch at the black-eyed man's cheek and then a kick to his stomach. The blows threw the man threw the air into the main aisle's wall. Tajek quickly looked back at Akaya and grinned as he put his left hand behind his head. "Maybe I overdid it."Akaya knew he had some power behind him, but she never imagined that much. She smiled brightly and she briefly relaxed her stance before she saw the dust rise from the area. The man was gone, leaving no trace of where he went. She breathed slowly, thinking about what their next step was. There was no time to get help. Help would come in fifteen minutes by her calculations of Faithe's running speed and response time from the Hokage and his men. They were going to have to press on to prevent an early release. She closed her eyes to focus more intently on the purpose of the chakra build-up. They were ninja of another land, but which one? Not sand or lightning or even sound. Then her eyes shot open, realizing that her dragon was their only hope. She looked at Tajek before she began running. She sprinted as fast as she could through the underground maze to the middle. She heard him calling for her, but to complete a mission required sacrifices. And to save her village and the people she grew up around would be worth her life. Especially if that meant he wouldn't die down here. He meant more to the village than she ever could. His yells seem more urgent now that they were getting closer, but her barrier's hum outvoted her thoughts to wait for him. There were four men down here. One was already hurt, and the other three were obviously weaker than the leader. She had to aim for wiping the whole operation out. If she failed, she was dead. And so was Tajek_

_Tajek caught sight of pieces of her. Her arm in a turn to the right. A foot in the turn to the left. His screams and yells weren't going to stop her, and she sprinted faster than he thought a girl was capable of doing. She even had a lighter foot than he did. She had a plan that he was left out of, and that left him chasing after a girl he barely knew. But what choice did he have? She saved his life when she didn't know him. He simply exerted more in order to keep pace with which ways and tunnels she went down._

_Akaya saw the middle approaching quickly and looked back to see Tajek catching up to her. She wasn't going to be stopped though. She did her hand signs as fast as she could and let the barrier break into a form of two dragons, winding up around her. Her ice dragon and fire dragon calmly looked at Akaya's running form and the clog that clearly came into view. They took more chakra from Akaya's feet as she charged as much as possible into the middle of the sewer. Her opponents immediately surrounded her. The man from before limped in the background closer to the chakra build-up. His plan was close to going into action, and she was the only thing standing in his way. The three other men corned her into the triangle they had formed. She grabbed her windmill shriken before Tajek was in total view. She tossed it toward one of the men, missing him completely. But she smiled as she dodged another's kick, snapping as she did so. The shriken set into a fire and returned to her in a boomerang fashion, splitting one in half, and leaving one harmed._

_Tajek just watched her intentions and her smooth, precise movements around her opponents. She had learned their weaknesses so quickly and exploited them seamlessly. He looked at how brilliant her body looked as she twisted to put a kunai in a man's stomach, leaving him defenseless. And then ruthlessly kicked him down. She sparkled in the dragons' light. He had heard she had an immense amount of chakra at her disposal, but this was unrealistic. How much chakra were they draining from her body to be tangible? Akaya turned her full attention to the dragons as the last man fell to the ground. Her blast had to hit perfectly or the whole village was gone. It had to hit the center at a lower angle. Akaya closed her eyes and let the dragons swish around her body. As she opened her eyes, they were filled with a gold chakra residue. She screamed as the chakra became extremely hot. She was boiling from the overload of energy, but she focused her screams into grunts and did the necessary signs for her blaster. "Ying Yang Dragon Blaster!"_

_Tajek watched as the dragons twisted into one, and in a beautiful array of chakra-lit energy force its way into the build-up. As it did so, the dragon split into two. The fire and ice dragon absorbed the chakra quickly and grew. As they finished, they redirected the blaster into the reeking man from before. The aftermath blew up the side wall and allowed water to rush in. And just like that, their mission was complete._

_Tajek was thoroughly impressed. No one had ever done that on his team before, and he was going to make sure this wasn't the last time they teamed up. He watched as their opposition was soon washed away unconscious, though one was missing. As he looked back at Akaya, she suddenly looked over at him, beaming with her confident smile, before falling to her knees. Even though they were on opposite walking paths of the sewer, Tajek raced through the filthy water to be catch her before she hit her head against the hard cement floor. Tajek looked down at her, noticing just how radiant she seemed to be. It took his breath away. "You okay, Akaya?"_

_She smiled and put a thumbs up at him weakly. "So how'd I do? Did I grab your attention?" She grinned her best grin and looked curiously into Tajek's relaxing eyes. She couldn't believe it actually worked._

_Tajek mildly smirked. "You have all of it. Just next time try not to go overboard."Akaya giggled, causing Tajek to blush again. He wasn't use to it at all. "So there's gonna be a next time? Guess I did pretty well then."_

_Tajek wiped some dirt from the corner of her chin and lifted her bridal-style into his arms. She gripped onto his shirt withstanding his approach by her pride. "I can walk you know. I'm not that weak.""Shut up and stop complaining." He smiled down at her lovingly. She was taken back by this look. She had never seen it from him before. She was about to argue her point, but he kissed her forehead. She fell silent as he continued. "What type of boyfriend would I be if I let my wounded girl walk through this maze?"Akaya just smiled as she fought the unconsciousness approaching. "So it's that easy, huh? I thought winning you over would take more than one mission." She smiled meekly as the darkness filled her vision._

_And as she fell into well-deserved bliss, she heard him speak to her. "It didn't even take a whole mission."_

Akaya saw the figure in the bathroom move toward her. She was about to let Akira attack when she heard his voice pulsing through the huge bathroom. "It's just me, Akaya."She quickly shut up the water and threw the towel on. She didn't bother drying her hair at all. He wouldn't care. She pushed the door open to find Tajek around the corner. His face was worried, and Akaya felt her cheeks blush. She realized then that she had been crying in her daze. She fell hard into his arms and stayed there. She thought she had gotten over the events from today, but they were just getting worse. Feelings were bubbling to the surface now. She had saved it once, so why couldn't she have saved it again? Tajek simply pushed her against him.

He smiled lovingly as he threw her into a bridal-style carry. He kissed her lips as he held her in his arms. "Feel familiar?"Akaya just laughed playfully and tugged her way out of his grasp. "Only this time I can fight back." She stood on her tip-toes and kissed his lips again. She held a firm grip around his neck. Her arms rested on his now broad shoulders. She wasn't about to let go either as she pulled his view to her eyes as she kissed him more passionately.

And that's when emotions led them to the bathroom's countertop. He kissed her shoulders that were now draped in a mixture of sweat and water, but he stopped. He couldn't do this to her now. He looked into her eyes as lust filled them and onto the eyelashes. He held her face in his hands and kissed her with all the love he had. "Baby, get dressed. We need to make a plan on how we're going home."Akaya felt the warmth of his hands on her cheeks and in his kiss. Now obviously wasn't the time for such novice thoughts. They had to find a way to bring order back to their lives first. Her towel began to slide down unintentionally. Tajek simply sighed and pushed it into her hand. To Akaya, respect was a high virtue, and he had all of hers. "We?"

He kissed her forehead as he eyes filled with joy and adventure. "Yes, we. Together." He gripped her left hand with his right one. He squeezed tightly and so did she. "If you still wanna be my girlfriend and all."Akaya's smile radiated through Tajek's heart. She had captured it, but her smile blew any feelings he had for her to a higher level. Her eyes twinkled as she closed her eyes and opened them, revealing the jutsu she was terrified of before. She saw a green aura surrounding him. It meant contentment and happiness. Then out of nowhere, there was a hue of purple. That meant deep love. An unconditional love. She closed her eyes and focused, which returned everything to normal. In a matter of hours, she had mastered her new trait. She kissed Tajek back on the neck and reached her mouth to his ear. "Of course I'm still yours."

Tajek let her go and found himself leaving the bathroom content. "Hurry now. We don't want to keep the Mizukage waiting."

He chuckled watching Akaya laugh with him. He didn't leave immediately. He cracked the door to listen to make sure she was going to be okay. Before he shut the door completely, he heard her confident voice return inside of her as she spoke to him. "Hey Tajek."

He reopened the door to see Akaya in her bra and underwear. He blushed as he examined her body with his eyes. She was even more radiant than when he first met her. He looked at her ever-glowing eyes as he spoke in almost stutter. "Yeah."She smiled as she continued, smiling like the first time. "It didn't even take a whole mission." He smiled as he gently closed the door and walked down the hallway to his bedroom, which he made sure was right across from hers. He happily whistled, knowing they'd be okay. And that'd do this together. Just like the first time.


End file.
